06/06/2026
Spider veins or varicose veins โ which one is this?
It's one of the most common questions we get, and the answer matters more than most people realize.
Spider veins are the tiny red, blue, or purple vessels visible right at the surface of your skin โ usually thin, web-like, and flat.
Varicose veins are larger, often raised and twisted, and sit deeper. They're the ones you can sometimes feel under the skin.
Here's what's interesting: both conditions come from the same root cause. Tiny one-way valves inside your veins are supposed to push blood up toward your heart. When they fail, blood pools backward โ and depending on where that happens and how deep, you get spider veins, varicose veins, or both.
The reason it matters which one you have: treatment is different for each, and one of them is more often cosmetic, while the other is more often medical with symptoms like aching, swelling, and heaviness.
If you've been wondering which is which on your own legs, our free 15-minute vein screening is the first step.
๐ La Jolla ยท San Diego
๐ 858-800-2480
๐ Book online: https://www.ithriveveins.com/vein-screening-san-diego